Probably the best absinthe cocktail book out so far, although there's competition coming out with Imbibe's Kate Simon bringing out another cocktail book in a couple of weeks.

The author, Winston Guthrie, is the man behind the Absinthe Buyers Guide site, which is in serious need of an update (being done, I understand). The book is much, much better and he is now evidently somewhat more informed (with the help of Tempus Fugit and Peter Schaf, I believe).

Water definite choice for me. But I've also used it regularly in the fashion of Don the Beachcomber in Tiki drinks where an added dash of bitters and "Pernod" are called for, I "substitute" absinthe. Some of those wood cover cocktail books I love so much call for some pretty heavy proportions of absinthe and I find it hard to fathom how they came to be. Edited for examples: Absinthe - 1 pony absinthe, 1 pony water, 2 dashes bitters, 3 dashes benedictine; and Millionaire (No. 2) - 2/3 dry gin, 1/3 absinthe, 1 egg white, 1 dash anisette.

•Photographer Liza Gershman presents the release of the new book:
“A Taste for Absinthe: 65 Recipes for Classic and Contemporary Cocktails” by R. W. Guthrie and James F. Thompson with photos by Liza Gershman

From the Foreword:
"A Taste for Absinthe explores its history in the old world and in American cocktails, capturing the romance and mystery of absinthe, or the Green Fairy as it was affectionately known, while concisely telling the colorful story of its rise and fall."
- Dale DeGroff, aka King Cocktail
www.atasteforabsinthe.com

•A panel of absinthe experts, along with the author, will discuss history, production, cocktails and the future of absinthe, along with taking your questions.
•Book signing by the author, photographer and local bartenders who contributed their recipes:

Barman Erik Adkins welcomes you after the event to try 4 different absinthe-based cocktails from recipes contributed to the book, along with traditional absinthe drips, on a special event-priced drinks menu at the Slanted Door restaurant, located in the Ferry Building near Book Passage.

I'll second Brian's recommendation; I picked up a copy last week. Aside from a few errors (it recommends storing a bottle of absinthe on its side, for example) and its off-puttingly relentless promotion of Vieux Pontarlier (hmmmmm), this is one of the best--and most accurate--books on our favorite beverage I've read.

And the cocktails are killer. A Taste for Absinthe re-jiggers the recipes for a number of classic absinthe cocktails (Arsenic and Old Lace, Cocktail a la Louisiane) to wonderful effect and introduces a number of fantastic contemporary drinks. My favorites so far are the Bitter End and the Iceberg.

Good stuff!

"Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot" -- Charlie Chaplin

After reading through the book, I decided to take a look at the website.

For someone who is claiming their website is the world's foremost authority on absinthe, he certainly has a terrible site. Almost all of the products reviewed are Czechsinthe or mid to low quality brands. Yikes.

I was holding this book in my hands today, considering buying it, but I knew I needed to check here first (the WS instinct kicking in I guess). Glad to hear it's worth buying since it is so damn pretty. Pretty and useful? I'm sold!

The basic tools of the absintheur are essentially a spoon, glass, sugar cube, chilled water, and absinthe. None of the other objects are actually necessary to prepare the drink, but they are imperative for instigating a type of visual hypnosis and bringing richness to the ceremony.--Betina J. Wittels

After reading through the book, I decided to take a look at the website.

For someone who is claiming their website is the world's foremost authority on absinthe, he certainly has a terrible site. Almost all of the products reviewed are Czechsinthe or mid to low quality brands. Yikes.

OK, so I was out shopping with the family down in Towson, MD yesterday and stopped by the local Barnes and Noble on a whim. Checked out the wine and spirits shelf in the Food and Cooking section and what should I see but:

Nice!

I had the chance to flip through Absinthe Cocktails (AC) at home last night and do a quick comparison with A Taste for Absinthe (ATFA).

First impressions: As Alan points out in his review (nicely done, by the way), there are a number of similarities between the two books. Both are essentially absinthe cocktail books that also offer a little background about the spirit, a primer on its traditional preparation, and a buying guide by brand. Both divide their cocktails into "classics" and "contemporaries" and there are a number of cocktails that appear in both, including the Sazerac (of course), Monkey Gland, Pan-American Clipper, Remember the Maine, Corpse Reviver #2, Doctor Funk, My Oh My Ty, Gill Sans, Night Porter, and a few others (including the basic recipes for frappe, suisesse, etc.). This isn't a huge deal, though, since the recipes are different in several cases and also because there are many other recipes unique to each book.

As for the total number of recipes, AC offers 50 while ATFA offers 65 by my count. ATFA also offers more in the way of history and background. It's the longer and more detailed of the two books. It's also the more generous in terms of its layout, including photos of every drink (which I really appreciate) and giving most of the cocktails a full two pages to themselves (one page for recipe, the other for the photo). AC has some great photos too, but only every couple of pages. Finally, the buyer's guide in ATFA is much longer and more detailed, with tasting notes, pricing, etc. (though it's worth noting that the guides in both books are limited to the absinthe brands that are currently available on the US market, which means no Jades other than N-O, no Emile Pernot, etc.).

On the other hand, AC has a few things going for it as well. In general, though I prefer the layout of ATFA, I like the graphic design of AC better. It's more baroque and antique-looking (especially with the dust jacket off), more like a classic cocktail book. The prose is a bit purple at points (example: "Absinthe was burned at the stake and pronounced dead, but it was really just taking a ninety-year nap"), but like ATFA Simon's book is essentially factual and does a good job of working to dispel all the myths surrounding absinthe and to distinguish between real absinthe and fakesinthe. I also like the fact that AC includes many different specific brand recommendations in the cocktail recipes (rather than recipe after recipe recommending Vieux Pontarlier) AND the fact that it singles out several important contemporary mixologists like Toby Maloney, Chris Hannah, and Jim Meehan and gives us a few cocktail recipes by each rather than just one apiece. Finally, there are some fantastic cocktail recipes in here than you won't find in ATFA. I was pleasantly surprised to see the recipe for Maloney's drink, Vincent's Ruin, which I enjoyed when I visited the Patterson House in Nashville this past summer--along with a few other contemporary recipes I'm familiar with and more a look forward to trying. There's also new versions of classic recipes that I can't wait to try, including one for the Chrysanthemum that uses blanco vermouth instead of the usual dry. Genius!

I guess if I had to recommend one over the other, it would be A Taste for Absinthe. But I'm very glad to have both and foresee using each of them quite a bit.

"Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot" -- Charlie Chaplin

It should be noted that the absinthes that might be recommended in recipes in ATFA were selected by the bartenders themselves, there was no attempt to coerce them to choose one brand over another.
Out of 65 recipes, I count 7 that call specifically for Vieux Pontarlier.

It's true that only 7 out of the 65 recipes in ATFA specifically call for VP, but this doesn't quite tell the whole story. First, although 7 sounds like a relatively small number, it's almost twice as often as any other verte is recommended in the book. I counted 4 recommendations each for St. George and Pernod; most other vertes that appear by brand name in the book (Obsello and Duplais among them) are recommended only once. I'd also point out that it's not just cocktail recipes from name mixologists that call for VP; 1 of the 7 drinks mentioned above is the book's "recipe" for the traditional absinthe drip, which recommends using VP and is not attributed to anyone (one infers that it is simply the book's recommendation).

Furthermore, I think it's only fair to note that VP isn't just featured by ATFA in the aforementioned cocktail recipes. It's also featured prominently in the book's photos, appearing several times throughout (pp. 11, 20, 143). The only other absinthe brand that appears in a photo is Duplais, which shows up once. Both are, of course, distributed by TF.

Likewise, VP is singled out in the text of the book. It's the only contemporary brand of absinthe mentioned by name in the book's Absinthe Primer, which touts it as the one brand of absinthe available in the US that uses Pontarlier wormwood. It's also the only brand in book's Absinthe Buying Guide whose tasting notes are accompanied by a critical accolade: "This authentic absinthe has been considered by a well-regarded critic as 'the Gold Standard for the Absinthe category.'" The book merely notes whether the other brands listed are a good value or not; no mention of awards or quotes from "well-regarded critics."

Cumulatively, all of this suggests (to me, anyway) that ATFA has an interest in promoting the VP brand. This isn't surprising given TF's involvement in the book, which is forthrightly mentioned in the book's Acknowledgments: "...John Troia and Peter Schaff [owners of Tempus Fugit Spirits and Vieux Pontarlier Absinthe] were insightful, generous with their resources and contacts, and always ready to help."

There's nothing inherently wrong with any of this--I don't see it as evil, unethical, etc. I just find it a little irksome that other brands of absinthe aren't featured as prominently as VP. One of the things I like about Absinthe Cocktails is that it's a bit more democratic in its recommendations and product placement.

"Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but a comedy in long-shot" -- Charlie Chaplin

I have no problem with TF products being featured more prominently given their involvement. Especially since they are well regarded products in the first place.

I find it much more irksome that Winston and his site will be getting a lot of attention with such a well constructed book, even though there are much better online resources available elsewhere. his site will not do any justice to well made products.

I find it much more irksome that Winston and his site will be getting a lot of attention with such a well constructed book, even though there are much better online resources available elsewhere. his site will not do any justice to well made products.

Winston's site doesn't need too much help from the book: it's been one of the top Google results for "absinthe" for some time. Winston tells me that the Guide will be updated to reflect both the current US market and European absinthes.

I find it much more irksome that Winston and his site will be getting a lot of attention with such a well constructed book, even though there are much better online resources available elsewhere. his site will not do any justice to well made products.

It's getting there. Looking at the site now, it is clear that he is moving that way. The US section is not yet finished (more brands to be included), but the separation of the various styles seems good.